The prize came courtesy of a Royal Gems instant game purchased at H V Liquors located at 22576 MacArthur Boulevard in California. The Virginia woman's husband purchased the ticket at the St. Mary's County retailer and gave it to her to scratch, but she couldn't immediately tell how much they had won. Her husband went to a Lottery retailer and scanned the scratch-off at the ticket checker, which directed them to cash the ticket at Lottery headquarters in Baltimore.
“I was traveling and he told me on the phone,” said the lucky winner, who works in customer service. “He said, 'I've got some good news.'”
This is by far her largest Lottery win. Her previous best came last year when she won $5,000 by hitting the Pick 4 straight on a $1 bet. She said the money will help to pay for her children's college expenses, and she added that she might do some traveling.
The $20 Royal Gems ticket launched in September and one of its $1 million top prizes is still waiting to be claimed. There are also two remaining $50,000 prizes, 10 $10,000 prizes and thousands of prizes ranging from $20 to $5,000.